Nursing home operators that were able to diversify their businesses and adjust to the patient-driven payment model (PDPM) while battling through Covid-19 now find themselves in a position of strength. This was one message that top operator executives delivered last week at Skilled Nursing News’ CLINICAL conference in Washington, D.C. They discussed how Covid-era practices […]
Brickyard Healthcare
Research suggests that collaboration between various departments leads to better health outcomes at nursing homes, but that has been a difficult principle to follow, often because of time and regulatory constraints placed on staff already stretched thin. However, team-based care is the name of the game and sticking to it is important for the future […]
The Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society, one of the largest skilled nursing providers in the United States, plans to consolidate its operations from 22 states to seven. Once the process is complete, the Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based Good Samaritan Society will have operations in South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Kansas and Colorado. About […]
Economic uncertainty, staffing shortages, looming federal regulations, a new COVID variant and major changes to the Minimum Data Set (MDS) are just a few of the challenges facing the skilled nursing sector at the dawn of 2023. But a new year is also a time for optimism. Favorable Medicaid policies, the growth of strong regional […]
After divesting of its sizable portfolio over the course of several years, SavaSeniorCare will cease to exist as a company once its last five nursing homes transition to other operators, which the company expects to occur by the end of January 2023. The end of Atlanta-based Sava marks another sea change in the skilled nursing […]
As nursing home staff continue to see a higher concentration of high acuity patients, advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) may be the key to improving care outcomes and reducing hospital readmissions. University of Missouri Sinclair School of Nursing Assistant Professor Alisha Johnson spent a year interviewing APRNs in Texas about their transition to the nursing […]
The top quotes of 2022 memorably captured some of the biggest skilled nursing issues of the year, from “shocking” payment policies to “colossal” regulatory issues to “transformative” changes. The quotes below not only serve as reminders about what transpired over the last 12 months, but touch on many issues that are still pressing as 2023 […]
Nursing home operators are changing their approach to staffing and recruitment to be more proactive and flexible, helping address severe staffing shortages being felt across the sector. The pandemic forced Dwyer Workforce Development (DWD) to be more creative about attracting a pipeline of talented folks who might not have been their typical candidates in the […]
Skilled nursing operators should anticipate further distress in the coming months and into 2023, which will likely result in even greater divides among providers. The winners and losers already are being sorted, as the latest round of real estate investment trust (REIT) earnings made clear. And unsurprisingly, strong regional operators are leading the pack. Welltower […]
Nursing home operators were able to tell the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) directly how much certain waivers helped their organizations during the pandemic, with the temporary nurse aide (TNA) and three-day stay waivers being the most beneficial. SNF industry leaders also made their case for extending waivers or making some permanent during […]
Current immigration policies are creating unnecessary roadblocks that hinder the recovery and potential growth of the nursing home industry’s workforce by “leaps and bounds.” And the situation has only become increasingly more dire as the sector faces a labor shortage at levels not seen in the last three decades. The ability to bring over international […]
As operating costs remain high and staffing shortages persist, nursing homes across the country, particularly those situated in small markets, are closing their doors in response. Staff, as a result, are then left with the decision to relocate to another facility perhaps many miles away, or leave the industry altogether. Seven nursing homes in the […]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) went beyond what was expected in a positive way, nursing home operators say, with the SNF final rule allowing for the Patient-Driven Payment Model (PDPM) cut to be spread out over two years and a 2.7% pay bump for 2023. Wesley Rogers, president and CEO of Brickyard […]
As nursing home operators scramble to recruit direct care workers during a historic staffing shortage, many in the sector believe there is one obvious solution that has yet to gain meaningful traction, in part due to legislative gridlock: immigration. Meanwhile, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has honed in on minimum staffing ratios, […]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on Wednesday issued updated guidance for nursing home surveyors under the requirements of participation for Medicare and Medicaid, and in support of nursing home reform initiatives first unveiled in February. As providers and industry associations digested the updates, one familiar theme emerged: concern over new requirements and […]
Operators seeking to grow their own staff with in-house licensing programs have been met with financial and compliance barriers in the form of civil monetary penalties, or CMPs. During a time when operators are limiting admissions as a result of the staffing crisis, industry leaders feel such restrictions are arbitrary and punitive. Federal legislation has […]
After months of wondering if hospital referrals would ever rebound during the height of the pandemic, skilled nursing operators now face a new problem. Worsening staffing shortages have left many operators unable to meet current patient demand. That’s according to a new report from CarePort, a WellSky company. The report examines data from more than […]
The director of nursing (DON) role has picked up dozens of additional responsibilities during the pandemic, clinical leaders say, as the nursing home sector continues to work through a historic staffing shortage. The result can amount to, at times, an “extremely stressful” position, according to North Shore Healthcare Chief Clinical Officer Tina Belongia. DONs across […]
Skilled nursing operators are facing madness — the bombardment of new tech, staff burnout, as well as intense and even ageist regulations and payment rates — yet there is a way to drive clinical innovation and create magic for residents. That’s according to Arif Nazir, chief medical officer at Signature HealthCARE and CEO of Signature’s […]
With data suggesting that more than 400 nursing homes could close in 2022 and pandemic-related federal funding coming to an end, SNFs are increasingly having to find ways to solidify their role in the post-acute care continuum moving forward. For nursing home leaders, this means identifying what types of investments will move the needle forward […]


